During the reporting period, winter wheat was harvested from early to mid-June, while summer maize was planted in late June. Crop conditions in the Loess Region were close to average compared to the previous five years. The CropWatch Agroclimatic Indicators (CWAIs) in Loess Region show that the weather conditions were generally normal: Rainfall (RAIN) exceeded the average by 7%, temperature (TEMP) was below average by 0.1°C and radiation (RADPAR) dropped by 1%. The potential biomass (BIOMSS) was 2% above average. Temperatures were slightly below the 15-year average in April and then reverted to average in May and June, and were slightly above average in July. This may accelerate the loss of soil water, which is detrimental to the subsequent growth of autumn crops. As can be seen from the regional NDVI development graph, the crop conditions were generally close to the 5-year average in this reporting period. Precipitation was also generally close to average, and in late April, mid-May, and mid-July it was close to or above the 15-year maximum. NDVI clusters and profiles show that crop conditions were close to average in most parts of the region; about 7.7% was below the 5-year average from June to July, mainly in the northwest part of Henan Province. The Maximum VCI map shows high VCIx values in most cropped areas of the region, with an average value of 0.88. CALF was at 96% which is 2% above the 5YA.In conclusion, the current agroclimatic and agronomic conditions show normal crop production situation in this region.

Figure 4.14 Crop condition China Loess region, April - July 2021

a Crop condition development graph based on NDVI

b Time series rainfall profile

c Time series temperature profile

d Maximum VCI

e Potential biomass departure from 5YA

f Spatial distribution of NDVI profiles

g Proportion of NDVI anomaly categories compared with 5YA 

h Proportion of VHIm categories compared with 5YA